Ballot Access News | Edited By Richard Winger

Shockingly Low Turnout in Illinois Democratic Primary Suggests Many Democrats Voted in Republican Primary

Posted on March 20, 2014 by Richard Winger

With 100% of the precincts counted, but some absentee and provisional ballots still uncounted, here are election returns for the Illinois primary of March 18. The number of votes cast in the Democratic primary for Governor is only 438,112, even though that race was contested. By comparison, here is the number of votes cast in recent previous Democratic primaries for Illinois Governor: 2010 915,726; 2006 944,397; 2002 1,252,516; 1998 950,307.

In other words, the number of votes cast in the 2014 primary was less than half of the number of votes cast in each of the last the four preceding Democratic gubernatorial primaries. The number is apparently the lowest number of votes cast in an Illinois Democratic gubernatorial primary since the 1940’s.

The 2014 Republican primary shows 808,830 votes cast for Governor. Past Republican Illinois primary vote totals for Governor are: 2010 767,485; 2006 735,810; 2002 917,828; 1998 707,406. 2014 is the first Illinois primary with more voters choosing the Republican primary ballot than the Democratic primary ballot since 1986.

It seems clear that hundreds of thousands of Illinois Democrats chose the Republican primary ballot. Illinois is an open primary state. Illinois voter registration forms don’t ask voters to choose a party. The motivation for so many Democrats to vote in the Republican primary was that Bruce Rauner is considered to be a foe of government employee unions, whereas Kirk Dillard, his leading Republican competitor, is their friend. Rauner narrowly beat Dillard, 323,296 to 302,035.

Ohio Green Party Still Has Chance to Qualify its Gubernatorial Candidate for the November Ballot

Posted on March 20, 2014 by Richard Winger

The Ohio Green Party is asking voters to choose a Green Party primary ballot in May, and to write-in Anita Rios for Governor and Bob Fitrakis for Lieutenant Governor. The primary is May 6. If the ticket gets 500 write-ins in the primary, it will appear on the November ballot. The Green Party’s web page is asking voters to pledge to cast a write-in vote, and is hoping that such voters identify themselves in advance, so the party will know how it is doing. See this pledge form on the party’s web page.

Libertarians can’t nominate by write-in, for Governor, in the primary, because the deadline for filing as a declared write-in had already passed by the time the party’s candidate was removed from the primary ballot.

The other two ballot-qualified minor parties in Ohio, the Constitution Party and the Socialist Party, have no gubernatorial candidates this year.

Chicago Tribune Columnists Suggests Illinois Could Benefit from Instant-Runoff Voting

Posted on March 20, 2014 by Richard Winger

Chicago Tribune columnist Eric Zorn has this column, suggesting that Illinois would benefit from using Instant-Runoff Voting. Thanks to Rick Hasen for the link.

Ohio Libertarians Appeal Primary Ballot Access Ruling to Sixth Circuit

Posted on March 20, 2014 by Richard Winger

On March 20, the Ohio Libertarian Party asked the Sixth Circuit to expedite its appeal on whether its statewide candidates should be restored to the Libertarian primary ballot. The party’s brief says, “Ohio’s strict, vicarious punishments of candidates for the sins of their circulators is far too much medicine for the ends (disclosure, fraud detection, prevention) it seeks to achieve. If section 3501.38(E)(1) substantially served Ohio’s end in deterring and preventing fraud, after all, the Secretary would enforce it all the time, not just when someone files a protest.”

The brief also points out that the law requiring circulators to fill in a blank, showing who is paying them, has existed for eight years and had never before been used to remove a candidate or a ballot measure from the ballot. Finally, the brief says that the Ohio Supreme Court will soon be considering whether the challenger who challenged the party’s Attorney General candidate, Steve Linnabary, is eligible to be a challenger (he has never voted in a Libertarian primary). The brief asks that the Court order the Secretary of State not to print the Libertarian primary ballots until the Ohio Supreme Court has a chance to settle the matter of the Attorney General candidate. In the Sixth Circuit, the case is 14-3230. This news story covers not only the U.S. District Court decision, but the news that the party has appealed to the Sixth Circuit.

Kansas Legislature Repeals Ban on Out-of-State Circulators

Posted on March 20, 2014 by Richard Winger

On March 19, the Kansas Senate unanimously passed HB 2130, which repeals all Kansas laws that bar out-of-state circulators. The new law requires circulators to be at least age 18, a citizen of the U.S., and to not be an ex-felon. The House had passed this bill in 2013. The bill now goes to the Governor.

Ohio Libertarian Candidates Lose Primary Ballot Access Lawsuit

Posted on March 20, 2014 by Richard Winger

on March 19, U.S. District Court Judge Michael H. Watson ruled that the Ohio law requiring paid circulators to identify their employer on each petition sheet is probably constitutional. Therefore there is no basis to restore the statewide Libertarian candidates to the Libertarian Party primary ballot. The party and its statewide candidates have filed a notice of appeal.

The decision does say, “Evidence in the record supports an inference that operatives or supporters of the Ohio Republican Party orchestrated the protest”, but the decision also says that is not relevant to the constitutionality of the disclosure law. The opinion says that the disclosure requirement is necessary to help prevent petitioning fraud, although the opinion also says there is no reason to think any of the petitions in this matter are fraudulent.